Ford Ironman 70.3 Hawaii - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

As I finished my warmup swim, I noticed there was a lot of room in the water at the start line with most of the people starting on the beach. I was planning on hitting the first 200 yards pretty hard so figured what the heck I'll take a front row seat. Worked out really well. I had read about the first bouy being a bottleneck but got right up and around with only minor contact and no slowdown. Sighted on the next bouy. Again up and around with plenty of room. The backstetch of the course was quite long so I decided to move out a bit as faster swimmers were starting to pass. My goggles started to haze while sighting above water but the water is so clear that you could easily see your position relative to the other swimmers. I probably got out a little farther than I needed to and that cost me a little but caught some nice drafts and cruised along. Drafting was so much easier with the clear water. Exited the water and felt great. It is such a beautiful place to swim. You can see the bottom (coral, sand, fish) the entire route.

Navigate a little better in the latter half of the race. Maybe push my pace a little harder.

Did not have a very good transition. There were only a couple of showers and people were lingering too long so I pretty much bypassed them. Had to run up a fairly steep incline to the bike area and than another 50 yards or so to where my bike was racked. All of your bike gear was in a plastic bag hanging on your bike so had to unpack and than stuff swim gear back in bag. Time seemed to just drag on and on until I finally got to the bike mount area.

Not much. I was relatively slow but deliberate. Just making sure I didn't do something stupid.

Had a great ride. You ride for about a third of a mile from the transition area up to the highway and you are coned in on the shoulder single file which made for slow going. Whence on the highway, I quickly found my pace and settled into a nice relaxed cadence. There were a lot of riders out there so it was impossible to maintain 4 bike lengths separation. On the steeper descents I saved my legs and just glided. I probably was a bit too conservative with my energy output but I was close to my target pace so figured I'd just enjoy the ride. Thankfully, the legendary winds were calm so no crosswinds to contend with. The aid stations were numerous and long enough to grab water, cool down with a showering, take a drink, toss bottle, and repeat if necessary. It was a surreal experience riding this course with all its history. It was like getting to play softball in Yankee Stadium. Very fun.

Maybe push a little harder.

You had to rack your own bike in your assigned spot. Your bike to run bag was sitting on the ground next to your spot. I had a little confusion with which aisle I was to go down but got there. Changed pretty quick and than got hung up beyond a guy walking. The rows were too narrow to get around him so I just smiled and danced kind of a jig behind him. Once clear I went over and high-fived my wife as I left T2. I was feeling really, really good at this point. Oh was that about to change.

Not much.

The run was absolutely brutal. It was impossible to get in any kind of rythm because of the terrain. My first couple miles went according to plan but than it hit me like a ton of bricks. There was no shade and the humidity was oppressive. My strategy was to walk the aid stations (every mile)for 30 seconds. Since the aid stations were generally on flat sections I decided to cash in my walk sessions when I got to a hill or incline instead of the aid stations. Many times walking up the steeper ones was actually just as fast as "running". There was plenty of water, ice, sponges, etc. at the aid stations to do what you could for yourself. With another HIM (Boise 70.3)for me in 2 weeks I pretty much shut it down and focused on preserving myself from the heat and anymore strain than was necessary.

Not much. If you want to race in Hawaii you have to be prepared to suffer a bit.

Cold beer.


The heat and terrain on the run neither of which I had any control over.


Great race and venue. Volunteers were great. I can't wait until next year. I think I can talk my wife into this being an annual event.